Semi-automatic repeating flare pistol



sept- 6, 1966 R. B. SMERNOFF ETAL 3,

SEMI-AUTOMATIC REPEATING FLARE PISTOL 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Dec. 28, 1964 In was Nflm RET ETN Y. Z M5 E EOV N 1 AM. 15 n 1 f v/ H s A 6 w 42 l 17% M 2 In p 6, 1966 R. B. SMERNOFF ETAL 3,270,455

SEMI-AUTOMATIC HEPEATING FLARE PISTOL 2 Sheets-Sheet Filed Dec. 28, 1964 n O m M MT E MTm 5v .N 8 w 0 B A S mw R R ATTORNEY.

United States Patent 3,270,455 SEMI-AUTOMATIC REPEATING FLARE PISTOL Ronald B. Smernofi", Los Angeles, Calif. (5396 Park Ave., Garden Grove, Calif.), and Russell 0. Stefan, Downey, Calif. (10950 Vulcan St., South Gate, Calif.)

Filed Dec. 28, 1964, Ser. No. 421,441 8 Claims. (Cl. 42-1) This invention relates to flare pistols and the like and it is a particular object of the invention to produce a semiautomatic repeating flare pistol.

Heretofore, flare pistols, whether large or small have been single shot pistols which have to be reloaded each time they are fired. Small flare pistols have been developed in recent years for use by individuals who are camping, hunting or boating, or by service men in time of war, for summoning help in time of distress. Frequently the conditions causing such distress render it difficult for the individual involved to reload a flare pistol so that repeated distress signals may be given where this is required. Furthermore, a considerable problem is presented in packaging extra cartridges for use in the pistol so that these will not get separated from the latter when they are most needed.

It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a repeating flare pistol from which a series of six or more flares may be sent aloft without reloading the pistol.

It is a further object of the invention to provide such a semi-automatic repeating flare pistol which is small and compact so as to readily fit within a pocket of the clothes and which will be relatively light in weight.

A still further object of the invention is to provide such a semi-automatic repeating flare pistol which may be economically produced and sold at a relatively low price.

The manner of accomplishing the foregoing objects as well as further objects and advantages will be made manifest in the following description taken in connection with the accompanying drawings in which FIG. 1 is a side elevational view of a preferred embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 2 is a front elevational view of FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is an enlarged vertical sectional view taken on the line 33 of FIG. 2.

FIG. 4 is a fragmentary vertical sectional view taken on the line 44 of FIG. 3.

FIG. 5 is a fragmentary vertical sectional view taken on the line 5-5 of FIG. 3, and showing a cartridge confined in the cartridge receiver with the latter positioned for firing said cartridge.

FIG. 6 is a vertical sectional view, taken on the line 55 of FIG. 3, which shows said cartridge receiver rotated into cartridge discharging position and also shows a cartridge being discharged broadside laterally therefrom.

FIG. 7 is a horizontal sectional view taken on the line 7-7 of FIG. 3.

FIG. 8 is a fragmentary view similar to FIG. 3 and showing the pistol of the invention held in a persons hand with the striker cocking-firing lever of the invention partly rotated, as occurs when firing the pistol.

FIG. 9 is a view similar to FIG. 8 and shows said lever still further rotated in the process of firing said pistol, and illustrates the point in said rotation where the spring biased striker is fully cocked and has just been released to be propelled against the detonating cap in the cartridge receiver which will accomplish the firing of that cartridge.

FIG. 10 is a perspective view of the cartridge receiver in said pistol.

Referring specifically to the drawings, the preferred embodiment of the invention illustrated therein comprises a semi-automatic repeating flare pistol which includes a body 16 made up of two halves 17 and 18 which are Patented Sept. 6, 1966 preferably die cast of light metal or injection molded of suitable hard plastic material. The left body half 17 and the right body half 18 meet together in a plane indicated by the line 33 of FIG. 2 and are secured together by suitable screws 19.

The body halves 17 and 18 have flat faces which meet face to face in plane 33 excepting where said body halves are hollowed out to provide certain voids, to be described hereinafter, within said body.

As clearly shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the body 16 formed by the halves 17 and 18 provides the pistol 15 with a handle 20 which is integrally connected with a pistol cross-head 21 at its upper end. The front edge of the handle 20 is provided with finger grips 22 while the rear edge of the handle has a boss 23 at its lower end and a web 24 filling in the angle between the cross-head 21 and an upper portion of the rear edge of said handle.

The voids within the body 16 above mentioned, are formed symmetrically with plane 3-3 and include a cartridge magazine chamber 25 which extends lengthwise throughout the handle 20 and has a cross-sectional shape as shown in FIG. 7 so as to freely slidably receive therein a specified number of cartridges 30. These are preferably fiare cartridges of the type designated by the numeral 11 in US. Letters Patent to R. 0. Stefan et al. No. 3,044,360 which issued July 17, 1962 on a flare gun, with this exception, that the neck 31 of said cartridge for receiving the detonating cap 32 thereof, is unthreaded and has a flange 33 which is spaced from the body of the cartridge to provide an annular groove 34 between flange 33 and the body of the cartridge.

Confined within each cartridge by a moisture-tight plastic seal 30a is a metal-sheathed projectile 35. The cap 32 contains a substantial powder charge which is adequate for propelling the projectile 35 to a desired altitude when the pistol 15 is fired with the cartridge pointing upwardly. As shown in FIG. 7, the magazine chamber 25 is shaped to include a pair of ribs 36 which extend into the annular grooves 34 of cartridges inserted in said chamber so as to guide said cartridges and keep the axis of said cartridges normal to the magazine chamber 25. The lower end of the magazine chamber 25 is closed by a removable plug 37 which is taken out for the purpose of replenishing said chamber with cartridges 30. Said plug, when replaced, traps a coiled expansion spring 38 which is placed in said chamber beneath the lowermost cartridge and which is under compression so as to constantly bias the cartridges in the chamber upwardly therein,

Included among the symmetrical voids above referred to, and formed within the head 21 co-axially therewith, is a short projectile discharge bore 39, counterbores 40 and within which a cartridge receiver 46 is rotatably mounted, and a striker bore 47, the outer end of which is closed by a wall 48 and the inner end of which has a conical shoulder 49 which terminates in a restricted central aperture 50 which opens into the upper end of the magazine chamber 25 co-axially with the uppermost cartridge 30 in said chamber.

Said symmetrical voids also include a flat recess 51 which occupies web 24, communicates at its upper end with a striker bore 47, and at its lower end, opens outwardly from the web 24. Provided in web 24, at the upper outer corner of recess 51, is a cam face 52, the purpose of which will be made clear hereinafter.

Hollowed out from counterbore 45 is an arcuate recess 53 Which connects with a passage 54 formed in body half 18 and in a boss 55 which extends downwardly along the handle portion of said body half. Boss 55 is also provided with a slideway in which a slide button 61 is slidably mounted. Permanently united with said slide button and extending upwardly therefrom along passage 54 and recess 53 is a flexible control element 62 which may be made of clock spring steel and the upper end of which is fastened as by a pin 63 to the periphery of cartridge receiver 46 for a purpose to be made clear hereinafter.

The cartridge receiver 46 is clearly shown in FIG. as comprising a cylindrical shell 64 which rotatably fits the counterbore 45 and which has a short barrel 65 extending from one end thereof to rotatably fit into the counterbore 40. The shell 64 and barrel 65 have a common bore 66 the diameter of which is slightly greater than the outside diameter of the cartridge 30. The portion of said bore which lies within the cyclindrical shell 64 has an opening 67 extending broadside from said bore the full width of the diameter of said bore, said opening having the same length as the shell 68 of said cartridge. At the opposite end of opening 67 from barrel 65, shell 64 is closed by a head 69 which has the same thickness as ribs 36 so as to readily fit within the annular groove 34 of the cartridge 30, said head having a slot 70 which is dimensioned to readily receive the neck 31 of said cartridge.

The cartridge magazine chamber 25 connects at its upper end directly with the counterbore 45 and the left hand portion of chamber 25 extends upwardly between said counterbore and the striker bore 47 and is arcu-ately shaped to receive annular flange 33 of a cartridge when the latter is propelled upwardly by expansion spring 38 through the broadside opening 67 of receiver 46 and into the bore 66 of the latter. When the cartridge 30 is thus received in said receiver, as shown in FIG. 3, it is of course concentrically aligned with the head 21 of the body 16 and with the various bores and counterbores formed in said head. The detonating cap 32 of said cartridge is therefore exposed through the axial end aperture 50 of the striker bore 47.

The body halves 17 and 18 are recessed co-axially with striker bore 47 in the area of wall 48 to receive the head 75 of a striker guide pin 76 so as to locate said pin axially in said bore. Slidable on said pin in said bore is a striker 77 having a conical pointed head 78 which fits the conical shoulder 49 when said striker is free to respond to a coil spring 79 which biases said striker towards said shoulder. Said striker is guided by the striker bore and pin 76 so that the pointed end thereof is maintained approximately in a co-axial relation with the pistol head 21. An annular groove 80 in striker 77 provides an annular shoulder 81 which is disposed opposite the opening of the upper end of recess 51 into striker bore 47.

Pivotally mounted on pin 82 in flat recess 51 is a cocking-firing lever 83 including an upper arm 84 on the upper end of which is pivotally mounted a cocking dog 85 having a tooth 90 and which is biased upwardly by a spring 91 to cause said tooth to engage shoulder 81 of the striker 77 when lever 83 is rotated from the position in which it is shown in FIG. 3 (and towards which it is biased by spring 92), to the position in which it is shown in FIG. 8, so that, as said swinging of lever 83 continues, the spring 79 is compressed and the striker 77 is cocked as shown in FIG. 9. This view illustrates the moment at which the cocking dog 85 engages cam face 52 thus withdrawing tooth 90 from engagement with shoulder 81 and releasing the striker 77 to allow the same to be impelled by coil spring 79 to extend the pointed end of the striker through central aperture 50 and into the detonating cap 32 of a cartridge positioned in the receiver 46 so as to fire said cartridge. The powder charge carried in the cap 32 is such that when a cartridge 30 is fired, this powder charge is ample to propel the projectile 35 from the cartridge out of the pistol through bores 66 and 39 so as to rise several hundred feet in the air if the pistol is then being pointed upwardly.

The head portion of body half 17 is provided with a rectangular empty cartridge discharge port 93 which is located so as to be in registry with a cartridge 30 which has just been fired and which remains in the receiver 46 when the latter has been rotated a quarter turn by depressing slide button 61 as shown in FIG. 6. This view shows this cartridge being shaken outwardly through discharge port 93, but before this can be done after the cartridge has been fired the striker 77 must be retracted outwardly from the central aperture 50, so as to be completely withdrawn from the detonating cap 32 of said cartridge, and thus free the latter for discharge laterally through the port 93. Sufficient tolerance is provided in the voids provided in the pistol 15 for accommodating the cartridges 30 so as to allow these cartridges to slide readily along the magazine chamber 25 and into the cartridge receiver 46 and, after a cartridge has been fired as above described, to allow this cartridge to readily fall by gravity from the pistol or be shaken therefrom as indicated in FIG. 6.

Following the firing of a cartridge as above described and the expelling of the empty cartridge, the slide button 61 is pushed to its uppermost limit thus reversely rotating the cartridge receiver 46 back to its original position in alignment with the magazine chamber 25 whereupon the remaining cartridges in said chamber will be shifted upwardly by pressure from the spring 38 thereby feeding the uppermost cartridge snugly into the cartridge receiver 46 in readiness to be fired. The striker 77 has to be withheld from the aperture 50 to allow the uppermost cartridge to thus be fed into firing position in the receiver. This withdrawal of the striker may be deferred until it is again desired to fire the pistol. In this case, depression of the lever 83 for the purpose of firing the pistol causes the uppermost cartridge in the magazine chamber to be propelled so rapidly into the receiver once it is relieved from pressure from the striker that there is no need to give thought to this matter.

By repetition of the steps above described for firing the pistol 15 and replacing the empty cartridge by a fresh cartridge, the pistol 15 may be fired repeatedly at relatively short intervals without any necessity of providing fresh cartridges to the pistol from outside the same.

When all the cartridges contained in the pistol 15 have ben thus fired and the empty cartridges ejected from the receiver, the plug 37 and spring 38 in the bottom end of the magazine chamber 25 are removed therefrom, and then replaced, after the magazine has been refilled with a fresh supply of loaded cartridges. Any suitable means may be provided for retaining the plug 37 in the lower end of the chamber 25 such as a pin 94.

From the foregoing description it is believed manifest that we have provided in the pistol 15 a device satisfying all of the objectives set forth in the preamble of this specification. While only a single embodiment of the invention has been disclosed, this has been for illustrative purposes only, and it is to be understood that various changes and modifications may be made in this embodiment without departing from the spirit of the invention or the scope of the appended claims.

The claims are:

1. A semi-automatic repeating flare pistol for firing projectiles from cartridges with relatively low powder charges, said pistol comprising: a body made up of two halves meeting in a vertical axial plane which halves are secured together to provide a handle and a crossahead integral with the upper end of said handle, said body halves being hollowed interiorly to provide a magazine extending lengthwise in said handle and closed at the lower end thereof, and to provide, co-axially in said crosshead, a projectile guiding bore at one end of said head, a cartridge receiver counterbore connecting axially with said bore and connecting broadside with said magazine chamber, and to provide in the opposite end portion of said cross-head from said projectile bore, a striker bore closed at its outer end and communicating at its inner end through a restricted axial aperture with said counterbore, and to provide in said body in the angle between said striker bore and said magazine chamber, a narrow, flat recess for accommodating a cocking-firing lever, said recess communicating at its upper end with said striker bore and having a lower portion thereof opening outwardly from said body; expansion coiled spring means in the lower end of said magazine chamber for placing a column of said cartridges in said chamber under constant upward spring bias; a cylindrical cartridge receiver rotatably enclosed within said counterbore and having a cartridge chamber which is aligned and communicates co-axially with said projectile guide bore while at the same time said cartridge chamber has a radial passage communicating broadside with the upper end of said magazine chamber to receive a cartridge from the latter, such cartridge, when so received, presenting its firing cap to said striker bore aperture while the discharge end of said cartridge is co-axially aligned with and opens into said projectile discharging bore; means for rotating said receiver to turn said radial passage out of registry with said magazine chamber, there being a cartridge discharge port in said body with which said radial passage may be radially aligned by rotation of said receiver whereby said cartridge may be expelled from the pistol through said port; a striker enclosed within said striker bore and spring biased to extend the same through said aperture; a spring biased cocking-firing lever means pivotally mounted in the recess provided therefor and extending outwardly through the lower opening therefrom for manipulation of said lever means by the same hand in which said pistol is held; catch means on said lever means for engaging said striker to cock the same; and cam means for freeing said striker from said catch means when said striker has been cocked whereby said striker is propelled against said tiring cap and fires the cartridge in said receiver.

2. A semi-automatic repeating flare pistol as recited in claim 1 wherein said counterbore is stepped to include minor and major counterbores; and a short barrel formed on said receiver to extend lengthwise forwardly from said radial cartridge passage, said barrel journaling in said minor counterbore and having an internal bore which is co-axial with and approximately equal in diameter to said projectile guide bore and the cartridge chamber of said receiver.

3. A semi-automatic repeating flare pistol as recited in claim 1 wherein said cartridge discharge port is located approximately at a right angle with said cartridge magazine chamber.

4. A semi-automatic repeating flare pistol as recited in claim 2 wherein said means for rotating said receiver comprises a button slidably mounted longitudinally on the opposite side of said handle from said cartridge discharge port; and a flexible spring strap connected at its opposite ends to said slide button and to the periphery of said receiver, whereby pushing and pulling on said slide button rotates said receiver in said receiver counterbore.

5. A semi-automatic repeating flare pistol for firing projectiles from cartridges with relatively low powder charges, said pistol comprising a body including a handle and a cross-head formed on said handle; magazine means provided in said handle for confining a column of said cartridges and spring-biasing the same towards said head; projectile discharge barrel means on said head; a cartridge receiver rotatably mounted in said head concentrically with said barrel means and having a single central chamber which has a radial passage opening broadside from said chamber for receiving one cartridge at a time broadside from said magazine when said passage is in alignment with the latter, to align said cartridge co-axially with said barrel means; means on said body for detonating the powder charge in said cartridge and thus propel the projectile from said cartridge through and from said barrel means; and means for rotating said receiver a partial rotation about its axis to accomplish the discharge of said cartridge from said pistol, and for then rotating said receiver to its original position for receiving another cartridge from said magazine.

6. A semi-automatic repeating flare-pistol as recited in claim 5 wherein said receiver rotating means reversely rotates said receiver in returning it to starting position.

7. A semi-automatic repeating flare-pistol as recited in claim 6 wherein said receiver rotating means comprises a manually engageable button; means for slidably mounting said button on said body; and a flexible compression member one end of which is connected to said button and the other end of which is connected to the periphery of said cartridge receiver.

8. A semi-automatic repeating flare-pistol for firing projectiles from cartridges with relatively low powder charges, said pistol comprising a body including a handle and a cross-head formed on the upper end of said handle; magazine means provided in said handle for confining a column of said cartridges with their axes lying in a common plane and spring-biasing said cartridges towards said head on an axis lying in said plane; projectile discharge barrel means on said head; cartridge receiver means rotatably mounted in said head concentrically with said barrel means and having a central chamber with a radial cartridge receiving and ejecting passage for receiving one cartridge at a time broadside from said magazine to align said cartridge co-axially with said barrel means; means on said body for detonating the powder charge in said cartridge and thus propel the projectile from said cartridge through and from said barrel means; and means for partially rotating said cartridge receiver means about the axis of said barrel means to accomplish the discharge of said cartridge from said pistol, and for then rotating said receiver means to its original position for receiving another cartridge from said magazine.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 146,611 1/1874 Peace et al. 42-39.5 2,865,126 12/1958 Dardick 4239.5 X

FOREIGN PATENTS 68,919 6/1915 Austria. 234,554 7/1964 Austria. 1,029,435 3/1953 France.

BENJAMIN A. BORCHELT, Primary Examiner.

R. V. LOTTMANN, V. R. PENDEGRASS,

Assistant Examiners. 

5. A SEMI-AUTOMATIC REPEATING FLARE PISTOL FOR FIRING PROJECTILES FROM CARTRIDGES WITH RELATIVELY LOW POWDER CHARGES, SAID PISTOL COMPRISING A BODY INCLUDING A HANDLE AND A CROSS-HEAD FORMED ON SAID HANDLE; MAGAZINE MEANS PROVIDED IN SAID HANDLE FOR CONFINING A COLUMN OF SAID CARTRIDGES AND SPRING-BIASING THE SAME TOWARDS SAID HEAD; PROJECTILE DISCHARGE BARREL MEANS ON SAID HEAD; A CARTRIDGE RECEIVER ROTATABLY MOUNTED IN SAID HEAD CONCENTRICALLY WITH SAID BARREL MEANS AND HAVING A SINGLE CENTRAL CHAMBER WHICH HAS A RADIAL PASSAGE OPENING BROADSIDE FROM SAID CHAMBER FOR RECEIVING ONE CARTRIDGE AT A TIME BROADSIDE FROM SAID MAGAZINE WHEN SAID PASSAGE IS IN ALIGNMENT WITH THE LATTER, TO ALIGN SAID CARTRIDGE CO-AXIALLY WITH SAID BARREL MEANS; MEANS ON SAID BODY FOR DETONATING THE POWDER CHARGE IN SAID CARTRIDGE AND THUS PROPEL THE PROJECTILE FROM SAID CARTRIDGE THROUGH AND FROM SAID BARREL MEANS; AND MEANS FOR ROTATING SAID RECEIVER A PARTIAL ROTATION ABOUT ITS AXIS TO ACCOMPLISH THE DISCHARGE OF SAID CARTRIDGE FROM SAID PISTOL, AND FOR THEN ROTATING SAID RECEIVER TO ITS ORIGINAL POSITION FOR RECEIVING ANOTHER CARTRIDGE FROM SAID MAGAZINE. 